Here in New
England we keep
our fingers crossed that we’ll still
have fresh strawberries by July 4th. Usually
our
local
blueberries aren’t
quite in, but you can buy good imported ones
or use frozen blueberries.

I love the combination of fruits,
but I particularly like being able to savor
each flavor, so
rather than mixing them, I arrange them
in separate parts of the pie. Makes a great
presentation and tastes great!

Red,
White, and Blueberry Pie

Wash,
hull, and slice strawberries and place in
a large bowl. Wash blueberries and place
in a medium bowl.

Mix flour and sugar and
add 1 cup of mixture to the strawberries,
and 1/2 cup to the blueberries;
stir to blend.

Squeeze on a little bit of
lemon juice on each fruit (about 1 TB total)
and stir. Let sit for about 10 minutes, stirring
occasionally, to bring the juices out.

Place
the strawberries in a ring in the outer part
of the pie crust, leaving the center
open. Fill the center with the blueberries.

Use
cookie cutters to make star shapes and arrange
them on top of the fruit.

Bake for about 10
minutes at 425. Lower heat to 325 and bake
for about another 50 minutes.
The fruits should be juicy and bubbling.
The fruit may look too juicy, but this will
firm up as it cools.

Tips from Jane

— Arranging
the fruit: sometimes I place a small
bowl in the middle of the
pie crust to keep the center clear, pour
the strawberries
around it, and then remove the bowl and
fill in the space with blueberries. Recently I’ve
just been eyeballing it
and arranging the fruit, keeping the middle
open, and that
seems to work fine. It's your choice—whatever
you’re comfortable with.

— I have several different
size star cookie cutters and
like to put lots
of stars on
this pie as pie
crust art. If you want
to get creative, you could also add some
stripes.

— If you want even more ‘white’ on
your red, white, and blue pie, top with
whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

— Since I
like to fill my pies with lots
of fruit,
they sometimes spill over. To protect
your oven, place an old baking sheet
or some aluminum foil on the bottom rack
of the oven.